©UCD SNMHS 2011
UCD School of
Nursing, Midwifery & Health Systems
Referencing Guidelines
Academic year 2011–2012
Prepared by the School Teaching & Learning Strategy Group
September 2011
©UCD SNMHS 2011
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1 Introduction
Page
1
2. Plagiarism
2
3. Referencing guidelines
4
4. In-text citations using the Harvard (author-date) style
7
5. Compiling the list of references
16
References
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©UCD SNMHS 2011
1. INTRODUCTION
Among the key attributes of a university graduate are an enquiring mind, problem solving, critical
thinking and creativity. The graduate is also expected to have the skills for retrieving and critically
appraising information and have good communication skills. The way that students demonstrate
evidence of the attainment of these attributes is mainly through the assessment process. Hence when
written material is submitted by the student, it is assessed not just for evidence of the student’s
knowledge of his/her subject, but also for evidence of the development of these key graduate
attributes. Hence, in addition to demonstrating knowledge, the student is also required to
demonstrate the ability:
o
To discover what is already known about a subject, i.e. information retrieval, literature
searching, critical appraisal, interpretation
o
To review published literature in a fair and unbiased way, accurately reflecting what is
known and a bringing together multiple published works in a single written piece
o
To communicate ideas effectively, coherently and concisely through the written word
o
To write with accuracy and precision, using correct grammar and spelling, proper syntax,
and correct punctuation
o
To think logically and clearly and to present the pros and cons of an argument in a balanced
way
The type of writing that is presented in essays, course work and other project work is referred to as
academic writing. Unlike creative writing (e.g. prose in a novel), or journalistic writing (e.g.
reportage, editorials, commentary), academic writing is formal writing that must meet certain
minimum standards of presentation and expression. It must be presented, using:
o
Clear and concise English with correct grammar, spelling and punctuation, proper syntax
with precision in the use of language and correct choice of words
o
A particular style of expression that is formal in its tone
o
An impersonal objective style, with absence of personal opinion, abbreviations, slang,
jargon or colloquialisms
The use of the first person is acceptable, but this must not be represented as personal opinion. For
example, it is appropriate to write: ‘when searching the CINAHL data base, I used the following
key search terms: “nurse”, “patient” …’ or ‘we conducted a review of the literature to look for
evidence of …’ It is not appropriate to write: ‘in my opinion ...’ or ‘I think it is important that ...’
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A key requirement in academic writing is the use of citations. Citations are references to the
published or unpublished work of others. In academic writing citations are essential, in order to:
o
Demonstrate the source of statements and ideas that are expressed in the essay by the
student
o
Acknowledge the work and the ideas of others
o
Permit the reader of the essay1 to make informed judgements about the material in the essay
and about the relevance of the cited work(s) to the topic under discussion within the essay
o
Indicate the precise sources that were consulted in compiling the essay or project, so that the
reader may locate and retrieve the relevant material if required
o
Reduce the likelihood that an act of plagiarism will be committed.
2. PLAGIARISM
The following extract from the UCD policy on plagiarism (UCD, 2011) defines plagiarism and
provides examples of what constitutes plagiarism.
Plagiarism is the inclusion of another person’s writings or ideas or works, in any formallypresented work, which forms part of the assessment requirements for a module or
programme of study, without due acknowledgement either wholly or in part of the original
source of the material through appropriate citation.
Plagiarism can include the following:
1. Presenting work authored by a third party, including other students, friends, family, or work
purchased through internet services;
2. Presenting work copied extensively with only minor textual changes from the internet,
books, journals or any other source;
3. Improper paraphrasing, where a passage or idea is summarised without due
acknowledgement of the original source;
4. Failing to include citation of all original sources;
5. Representing collaborative work as one’s own.
1
The word ‘essay’ is used throughout this document to refer to any form of written course work that is assessed.
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Plagiarism is a serious academic offence. While plagiarism may be easy to commit unintentionally,
it is defined by the act not the intention. All students are responsible for being familiar with the
University statement on plagiarism and with School policy, and if in doubt, are encouraged to seek
guidance from the relevant module leader or their personal tutor. When submitting material (e.g.
essay) for assessment, each student must sign and attach a declaration that the work is their own. In
addition, many module coordinators require students to submit their work electronically using
software that detects plagiarism. Work submitted in hard copy is also examined for evidence of
plagiarism.
The following guidelines2 set down the precise technical requirements that must be met in
accurately citing the work of others when presenting written work for assessment. Student should
consult these guidelines and the examples used to assist them in meeting the minimum standards
required of them.
2
These guidelines are informed by Pears, R. and Shields, G. (2010) Cite them right: The essential referencing guide (8th
edition). New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
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3. REFERENCING GUIDELINES
Unlike other forms of writing, such as literary prose or journalism, academic writing requires the
writer to support a position or argument by citing (i.e. making reference to) other published work.
This ensures that the ideas of others are acknowledged and that the reader can easily find the source
of the material that was referenced, such as a journal article or a book. Published material, including
material sourced on the Internet, is protected by copyright laws that confer ownership of ideas
(referred to as ‘intellectual property’) on publishers or on individual(s) who contributed to the
generation of the idea(s). For these reasons, written material submitted for assessment should
contain citations (also commonly referred to as ‘references’) to the work that was consulted when
preparing the essay. This involves two tasks, as follows:
(i) Inserting in-text citations, i.e. making a reference to an author within the text of the essay;
(ii) Compiling a reference list of all sources cited in the text at the end of the essay.
Note: The literature is defined as: ‘all of the published material about a particular topic, including
book, journal articles, conference publications and some internet publications.’
Textual and extra-textual material
All written material in the body of an essay is text. Any written material that is placed in brackets
renders that material as extra textual, i.e. outside the body of the essay; for example, ‘Living is
easy with eyes closed’ (Lennon, 1967).
Some formatting dos and don’ts
o
o
o
o
Do not use underline function in written work. Use italics instead
Use italics only to emphasise a word and only use it sparingly
Do not use italics when inserting direct quotations. Indent text by one tab space instead
Indented text should not have quotation marks, unless reporting conversation
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When making in-text citations and when compiling a reference list, a number of punctuation marks
are used. The following are used most frequently (Figure 1).
Name
The period
(or full stop)
The comma
.
,
The colon
:
The semi-colon
;
The ellipsis
...
The apostrophe
’
The hyphen
-
The en-dash
–
()
Parentheses
(or brackets)
Square parentheses
Quotation marks
(Double)
Quotation marks
(Single)
[]
“”
‘’
Uses3
It closes a sentence
In the reference list it is placed at the end of the full citation
It separates the elements in a list (e.g. comma, colon, semi-colon); it is
placed before certain conjunctions (like ‘and’, ‘but’); it separates elements
in a sentence (e.g. I going away, but I will be back soon.)
It introduces quoted material (e.g. Martin Luther King said: ‘We cannot
turn back.’); it introduces a list (e.g. The treatment of TB consisted of:
rest, exercise, fresh air and nutrition.)
Links two independent clauses in a sentence (e.g. Abdominal exercises
help prevent back pain; proper posture is also important.); it is used
before certain words, like ‘however’ and ‘for example’
Note: the semicolon is a weak period, not a strong comma
When quoting material in the text, the ellipsis indicates that some material
is omitted from the quotation (e.g. ‘She was a writer ... who used her
writings for political and not just scientific ends.’) In this example, the
ellipsis replaces omitted material, which is in red font: ‘She was a writer,
scientist, political lobbyist and social reformer, who used her writings for
political and not just scientific ends.’)
It is used in contracted words (e.g. ‘do not’ becomes don’t); it show
possession, (e.g. the student’s essay (NB: For plural nouns, the apostrophe
is placed after the s (e.g. the students’ experiences).
It is used to link two words (e.g. self-confidence) and to link two words
that, when combined, make up an adjective (e.g. nineteenth-century
history; in-text citations)
Ii indicates the space between dates in a chronological range or between
pages in a range of page numbers, e.g. 1939–1945; pages 31–35.
Used to include material that is to be de-emphasised, e.g. In 1854 (not for
the first time) Britain found itself at war with Russia on the Crimean
Peninsula. To indicate extra textual material, such as a citation in text, e.g.
(Fox, 2010)
Used to include explanatory words or phrases within a sentence (e.g.
Winston Churchill [the Prime minister during WWII] gave inspiring
speeches.). To include a missing word or phrase within a quotation to
maintain sentence integrity (e.g. The effects [of the disease] are many.)
Sets off material that represents quoted or spoken language e.g. Dylan
wrote: ‘He felt the heat of the night hit him like a freight train.’
To set off material that represents quoted or spoken language
Figure 1 Common punctuation marks and their uses*
3
For further information, see: http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/marks/marks.htm
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The Harvard Style
There are a number of systems (or conventions) for citing both published and unpublished work of
others. For the purpose of essays and other assignments, the UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery &
Health Systems requires students to use the Harvard Style (also known as the ‘Author-date
system’).4 This system of citation requires in-text citations, normally placed in parentheses
(brackets) within the text, and the preparation of a list of all citations, compiled as a list of
references, as follows:
Within the text of the essay insert:
i.
the cited author’s name(s) (use surname only)
ii.
a comma after the author(s) name
iii.
the date of publication
iv.
the page number(s), but only where a citation involves a direct quotation from an author(s)
work
Prepare an accurate list of all references cited in the text and compile this list as a list of references.
Place the list of references at the end of the essay under the heading References.
Example
The in-text citation:
In their quest for entry into the universities, women believed that they would obtain greater social
and professional mobility (Harford, 2008).
The source in the reference:
Harford, J. (2008) The opening of university education to women in Ireland. Dublin: Irish Academic
Press.
The basic rules are that:
o
o
o
Each citation in the text must be accompanied by an accurate reference to that citation in the
list of references.
Only citations in the text should be included in the Reference list.
The list of references must be presented in alphabetical order and must contain all citations
within the text of the essay.
The main features and requirements of the Harvard Style are explained below.
4
Examples of this system can be found in Endnote.
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4. IN-TEXT CITATIONS USING THE HARVARD (AUTHOR-DATE) STYLE
Citations in the text of the essay must contain both the name(s) of the author(s) and the date of
publication. Where a citation includes a direct quotation from an author(s), the page number(s) must
also be inserted. There are two principal ways of citing the work of others within the text of an
essay. The first and most common way is to paraphrase the written words of a single author or
multiple authors using the student’s own language (or synthesis). The second way is to insert a
direct quotation from the source, using quotation marks.
The examples that follow indicate the subtle variances in the Harvard style.
In-text citing
In-text citations are generally placed either in full in brackets within the text (i.e. extra textual) or
partly within the text as part of the sentence structure (i.e. textual). The following examples
illustrate the Harvard style:
Textual
Extra-textual
Example: Paraphrase (citation not a direct quotation) of a single author
In a review of antipyretic therapy, Carey (2010) concluded that the use of antipyretic drugs may be
ineffective and may delay recovery.
Note: The date only is in parentheses, because the author’s name is an integral part of the sentence
structure (i.e. the author’s name is textual, but the date is extra textual).
Example: Paraphrase of single citation of two authors
As nurses are responsible for taking measurements, it is essential that they are aware of issues of
measurement accuracy (MacKechnie and Simpson, 2006).
Note: Since the authors’ names and the date are not an integral part of the sentence structure (i.e.
both are extra textual), they are placed in parentheses
When citing up to three authors, all three authors’ names are inserted within the in-text citation.
Where the reference includes four or more authors, the first author name only is inserted, followed
by ‘et al’ which is placed in italics, followed by a period, which is not italicized, thus: ‘et al.’ (The
phrase ‘et al.’ is an abbreviation of the Latin phrase ‘et alii’, which means ‘and others’).
Using direct quotation
When using quotation marks in the Harvard style, it is acceptable to use single quotation marks, or
double quotation marks. The rule is to be consistent. The single quotation mark is used in all of the
examples that follow, and is recommended.
Example: Paraphrase of single citation of multiple authors
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In a study measuring attitudes of primary care nurses in Ireland towards caring for people with
hepatitis, Frazer et al. (2011) reported that the majority of nurses believed that universal precautions
would protect them from becoming infected with hepatitis at work.
Note: The citation refers to a publication with more than three authors; hence the use of the phrase
‘et al.’
Example: Paraphrase of multiple citations of multiple authors
Retrospective studies in humans suggest that failure to mount a febrile response is associated with
poor outcome in certain infections (Bryant et al., 1971, Weinstein et al., 1978, Mackowiak et al.,
1980).
Note: All three citations refer to publications with more than three authors; hence the use of the
phrase ‘et al.’
Example: Paraphrase (citation not a direct quotation) and multiple authors
Physical antipyretic therapies include ice packs, cooling blankets (Styrt and Sugarman, 1990), tepid
sponging (Styrt and Sugarman, 1990; Hay et al., 2009), removing clothing (Hay et al., 2009) or
fanning (Hay et al., 2009).
Note: The word ‘and’ in the citation should not be substituted by the ampersand (‘&’).
Note: Individual citations are separated by a semi-colon.
Example: Paraphrase (citation not a direct quotation) and two authors
Ryan and Levy (2003) highlight the fact that it is common for hospitalised patients with a fever to
receive pharmacological or physical antipyretic therapy.
Note: The word ‘and’ in the citation should not be substituted by the ampersand (‘&’). In this
example the reference is textual and only the date is extra textual, i.e. the authors’ names are an
integral part of the sentence structure
The second way to cite an author(s) in the text is to insert a direct quotation from the source, using
quotation marks. However, direct quotations should be used sparingly and only where it is
considered that the cited author’s own words are best to convey a point or to illustrate a particular
line of argument. The citation using a direct quote requires the insertion of the author’s surname, the
year of publication and the page number(s).
Example: Direct quotation as part of the sentence
In a review of antipyretic therapy, Carey (2010, p. 2389) concluded that ‘antipyretics at best do not
alter duration of illness, but at worst may prolong it’.
Note: The citation in brackets includes the page number preceded by the letter ‘p’
Note: Single quotation marks (‘’) are used.
Note: The full stop is placed outside the quotation mark (as in this example) and only falls inside
the quotation mark if the material quoted is a complete sentence.
Note: Compare this example with Example 1 above.
A direct quotation can also be used within a sentence to set up a direct quotation, as in the following
example:
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Example: Direct quotation as part of the sentence, using a semi-colon
In a study of the predictors of older people’s attendance at the emergency department (ED),
Naughton et al. (2010, p. 687) concluded: ‘Healthcare needs drove contact with the ED, this was
associated with a perception by older people of a lack of alternative resources in primary care.’
Note: Note that the semi-colon directly precedes the quoted material
Note: Short quotations of two or three lines can be set up within the sentence structure
Note: The page number is inserted
Example: Combining paraphrase and direct quotation
Hyde et al. (2010) examined Irish women’s experiences and understandings of the menopause using
in-depth interviews with thirty-nine women from varying socioeconomic backgrounds. These
authors reported that women ‘focused on their bodily experiences, [and] and their altered emotions’,
when speaking about the menopause (Hyde et al. 2000, p. 813).
Note: The page number is inserted, because a direct quotation is included.
Note: the word ‘and’, which is placed in square brackets, does not appear in the citied article. The
use of square brackets indicates that the word is added to maintain good sentence structure
Note: The verbs like ‘examined’ and ‘reported’ are often used when citing a research study
When presenting direct quotations of more than three lines (or more than 40 words), the direct
quotation should be preceded by a colon and the entire quotation should be indented by one tab and
no quotation marks are inserted.
Example: Direct quotation of more than three lines from a single sentence, (two authors)
Referring to the contribution that nurses can make in the treatment and care of patients with chronic
illness, Coster and Norman (2010, p. 526) write:
Self-management interventions for patients with asthma, epilepsy, and diabetes are
particularly promising, and nurses are clearly contributing to educational interventions of
chronic disease by both delivering programmes independently and alongside other
professionals.
Note: The direct quotation is preceded by a short sentence and a colon (‘:’)
Note: In a direct quotation that is indented, quotation marks are not required
Note: The direct quotation is indented by one tab space only
Note: The direct quotation is preceded by a line space and followed by a line space
As with the previous example, direct quotations of greater than three lines or containing multiple
sentences, or containing more than 40 words are set up as a separate paragraph and indented by one
(1) tab space.
Example: Direct quotation from a single passage of text, multiple authors
Fealy, McNamara and Geraghty (2010) write that the study of nineteenth-century sanitary reform
provides important lessons for contemporary infection control policy:
Today’s level of public mistrust in the health of hospitals and concerning antimicrobial
resistant infections is reminiscent of the mistrust that people expressed in the 19th century,
which was also based, in part, on a fear of contagion. Powerful historical lessons for
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contemporary practice are suggested: public trust in the health of hospitals can be regained
through effective, independent statutory inspection systems with a remit to monitor
standards and, where warranted, enforce compliance with standards.
Note: As with the previous example, the quoted text is preceded by a sentence and the text is set up
as a separate paragraph and indented by one tab space.
Note: Do not attempt to create a continuous sentence with the direct quotation and the sentence or
clause preceding it. Remember, the colon is used in both examples to ‘set up’ the direct quotation.
Where a direct quotation is presented with a piece of the quotation omitted from the essay, the
direct quotation must demonstrate this. The way to achieve this is by simply inserting the quotation
and inserting an ellipsis, which is a punctuation mark containing a single space followed by three
dots (no more or no less than three dots), followed by a single space in place of the omitted material
from the quoted passage. This denotes that some of the text that is being quoted is omitted, as in the
following example:
Example: Direct quotation from a passage of text with some quoted material omitted
Murphy and Fealy (2007) point to the challenges in achieving family-centred care for children in
hospital:
While nurses understand the complexities of caring for children and accept family-centred
care as an ideal philosophy for the care of children and their families, the implementation of
family-centred care in practice presents difficulties for nurses … It requires a relinquishing
of the traditional gate-keeping role held by nurses in respect of parents, and it requires the
skills of negotiation and collaboration.
Note: The ellipsis is not preceded by or followed by any other punctuation mark. It is preceded
by a space and followed by a space.
When citing two different works published by the same author in the same year, it is necessary
to distinguish between the two citations. This is done by simply identifying the first citation date
with and ‘a’ and the second citation date with a ‘b’.
Example: Two citations for the same author (single author) with two publications in the
same year
McNamara (2010a) writes that academic nursing needs to be responsive to the profession’s need for
evidence-based practice and he argues that in the future academic nursing departments in
universities will require a mix of expert nurse practitioners, managers, policy makers and research
experts (McNamara, 2010b).
Note: In the reference list the following should appear:
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McNamara, M.S. (2010a) ‘Where is nursing in academic nursing? Disciplinary discourse, identities
and clinical practice: a critical perspective from Ireland’, Journal of Clinical Nursing, 19 (5–6), pp.
766–774.
McNamara, M.S. (2010b) ‘What lies beneath? The underlying principles structuring the field of
academic nursing in Ireland’, Journal of Professional Nursing, 26 (6), pp. 377–384.
Example: Two citations for the same author with two publications in the same year
Academic nursing needs to be responsive to the profession’s need for evidence-based practice, and
in the future, academic nursing departments in universities will require a mix of expert nurse
practitioners, managers, policy makers and research experts (McNamara, 2010a, 2010b).
Note: This is simply an alternative to the previous example.
This same rule applies when there are multiple authors in the same year, as in the following
example.
Example: Two citations for the same author (multiple author) with two publications in the
same year
The majority of older people in Ireland have close relationships with family friends and neighbours
(Drennan et al., 2008a) and do not experience loneliness (Drennan et al., 2008b)
Note: In the reference list the following should appear:
Drennan, J., Treacy, P., Butler, M., Byrne, A., Fealy, G.M., Frazer, K. and Irving, K. (2008a)
‘Support networks of older people living in the community’, International Journal of Older People
Nursing, 3, 234–242.
Drennan, J., Treacy, P., Butler, M., Byrne A., Fealy, G.M., Frazer, K. and Irving, K. (2008b) ‘The
experience of social and emotional loneliness of older people in Ireland’, Ageing and Society, 28,
pp. 1113–1132.
Note: The same authors are listed for the two citations.
An alternative way to cite two different works published by the same author in the same year is to
place the author and details in parentheses at the end of the sentence, as the following example
illustrates:
Example: Two citations for the same author with two publications in the same year
The majority of older people in Ireland have close relationships with family friends and neighbours
and do not experience loneliness (Drennan et al., 2008a, 2008b).
Note: This is simply an alternative way of citing the same source as cited in the previous example.
When more than one source was consulted for the same statement, it is important to cite all of
the sources that were consulted, as in the following example:
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Example: Two citations for the same author with two publications in different years
A number of researchers reported a delayed effect of the emergency-department intervention
(McCusker et al., 2001; Mion et al., 2003).
Note: each individual citation is separated by a semi-colon
Edited book
When inserting an in-text citation from a book, it is important to check whether the book is by a
single author(s) or is an edited book. In the case of an edited book there will be multiple authors,
with each chapter typically written by a single author(s). In the case of an edited book, the citation
should refer to the chapter author and not the book editor.
Example: Citation for a single author in an edited book
During the Great Flu pandemic of 1918–1919 in Ireland, both doctors and their patients believed
that ‘a healthy, clean, fit body was the most effective protection against flu’ (Foley, 2011, p. 160).
Note: the Author is Foley and the citation is from an edited book by Cox and Luddy (2011). Hence
the citation in the reference list should read:
Foley, C. (2011) ‘This revived old plague: Coping with flu’, in Cox, C. and Clear, C. (eds) Cultures
of care in Irish medical History, 1750–1970. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 141–167.
Note: the word ‘in’ precedes the book editors’ names
Note: the abbreviation ‘eds’ in brackets indicates that Cox and Luddy are the book’s editors
Note: the abbreviation ‘eds’ is not followed by a period
Note: The first and last page numbers of the chapter are included.
Secondary source
When citing a source that was cited by another source, thus is termed a ‘secondary source’. If it is
not possible to find the original cited source, the source may be cited in the essay as a secondary
source, and so it is necessary to demonstrate this in the text of the essay. This is achieved by using
the phrase ‘cited in’ or other variations of the phrase within the in-text citation. It is preferable to
find the original source and an essay should contain minimal secondary sources.
Example: In-text citation of a secondary source
By the turn of the twenty-first century, there were many areas of midwifery practice in which little
or no research had been conducted (Raisler, 2000, cited in Butler et al. 2009, p. 577).
Note: The phrase ‘cited in’ is used to indicate that the citation is to a secondary source.
The source of the in-text citation is Butler et al. (2009) and not Raisler (2000) and hence the citation
in the reference list is to Butler. The reference should read:
Butler, M., Meehan, T.C., Kemple, M., Drennan, J., Treacy, M. and Johnson, M. (2009)
‘Identifying research priorities for midwifery in Ireland’, Midwifery, 25 pp. 576–587.
Example: In-text citation of a secondary source (alternative method)
Butler et al. (2009) cite a study by Raisler (2000), which showed that there were many areas of
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midwifery practice in which little or no research had been conducted.
Note: This is an alternative way of citing the same source as cited in the previous example.
The Internet
When citing an online article or a particular website source, it is preferable to cite the author
name and date in parentheses, where these are known. If there is no author indicated, cite the
title of the online article or report and the date in brackets. Where no article or report title is
indicated in the online source, cite the uniform resource locator (URL) in parentheses.
In the reference list, cite the following: the title of the Internet article or publication, and the date
on which the site was accessed and the article retrieved. When citing an internet source in the
reference list, copy the full URL as it appears in the address bar, so that the reader may retrieve
the online source if required.
Example: In-text citation of an Internet source, where author(s) name is known
Umble et al. (2007) used a combination of quantitative and qualitative data collection methods,
including an online survey and participant interviews.
Note: The citation in the reference list should read:
Umble, K.S., Diehl, A., Gunn, S. and Haws, S. (2007) Developing leaders, building networks: An
evaluation of the national public health leadership institute, 1991–2006. University of North
Carolina: The North Carolina Institute for Public Health. Available online at:
http://www.phli.org/evalreports/index.htm (Accessed: 24 June 2011).
Example: In-text citation of an Internet source, where report title is known
The demographic profile of the Irish traveller population is characterised by high fertility and
premature mortality (All-Ireland Traveller Health Study, 2010)
Note: The citation in the reference list should read:
Department of Health and Children (2010) All-Ireland traveller health study. Dublin: Department
of Health and Children, Available online at:
http://www.dohc.ie/publications/traveller_health_study.html (Accessed: 27 June 2011).
Note: The citation contains the author name (in this case Department of Health and Children), the
place of publication (Dublin) and the publisher (Department of Health and Children).
Example: In-text citation of an Internet source, where report title is known
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Darwin’s theory heralded a new era, in which the age of faith and religious certainty was replaced
by an age of religious doubt (http://www.victorianweb.org/science/darwin/index.html, 2011).
Note: The citation in the reference list should read:
The Victorian Web (2011) Available online at:
http://www.victorianweb.org/science/darwin/index.html (Accessed: 27 June 2011)
Note: The date of the citation is the year on which the online article was retrieved.
Do not use Wikipedia as a source for an academic essay. While this website may be useful as a
source of information on a whole range of topics, including articles on popular culture in such
fields as media studies, it is not a reliable source of information. The most reliable source is
academic research and other scholarly material published in peer-reviewed journals or books.
Conference papers
Individual papers at academic conferences may be cited in the text of an essay. Often the
proceedings of a conference are published in a book of conference abstracts, with a page number for
each conference abstract. An abstract is a short summary of the conference paper.
Example: In-text citation of a conference paper
Crawley (2010) conducted an investigation into older women’s experiences of ageing.
The citation in the reference list should read:
Crawley, L. (2010) ‘Women in old age: An egalitarian analysis of the emotional significance of
affective inequalities’, Thirty-ninth Annual Conference of the British Society of Gerontology,
Brunel University, London, 5–8 July. London: British Society of Gerontology.
Unpublished works
Unpublished works can also be cited and referenced in an academic essay. When listing the
reference in the reference list, it is important to indicate that the work is unpublished. A common
example of an unpublished work is a PhD thesis
Example: In-text citation of an unpublished work
Fox (2011) examined the use of complementary and alternative medicine among women with breast
cancer in Ireland.
Note: The citation in the reference list should read:
Fox, P. (2011) An investigation of the use of complementary and alternative medicine among
women with breast cancer in Ireland. Unpublished PhD thesis. University College Dublin.
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5. COMPILING THE LIST OF REFERENCES
When compiling the list of references, it is essential that all citations in the text of the essay are
included in the reference list at the end of the essay. The reference list is compiled in alphabetical
order. Each reference should be separated by a single line space. When compiling the reference list
do not use numbering or bullet points and do not underline journal or book titles.
Journal article
In the reference list a journal article must be cited as follows:
1. The author’s/authors’ last name, followed by a comma
2. The author’s/authors’ initials(s) followed by a period. If more than one author, each author’s
name is separated by a comma
3. The year of publication in round brackets
4. The full title of article in single quotation marks, followed by a period. Capitalise only the first
word of the article title and any proper nouns contained in the article title. If the article title contains
a colon, capitalise the word immediately following the colon
5. The title of the journal written in italics, followed by a comma. Capitalise the first letter of each
word in the journal title, except for linking words such as ‘and’, ‘of’ and ‘for’. Each word in the
journal title should be written out in full and not abbreviated.
6. The journal issue information to include: the volume number and, where applicable, the issue or
part number in round brackets, followed by a comma, followed by the abbreviation ‘pp’ followed
by a period
7. The page numbers of the cited article followed by a period.
Example: journal article, single author
Sheridan, A.J. (2006) ‘The impact of political transition on psychiatric nursing: A case study of
20th century Ireland, Nursing Inquiry, 13 (4), pp. 289–299.
Note: The punctuation mark separating page numbers is an en-rule punctuation mark (‘–‘) and not a
hyphen (‘-‘).
Example: journal article, two authors
Coghlan, D. and Casey, M. (2001) ‘Action research from the inside: Issues and challenges in doing
action research in your own hospital’, Journal of Advanced Nursing, 35 (5), pp. 674–682.
Note: the word ‘and’ is inserted between the two authors’ names
Example: journal article, multiple authors
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Hyde, A., Carney, M., Drennan, J., Butler, M., Lohan, M. and Howlett, E. (2010) ‘The silent
treatment: Parents’ narratives of sexuality education with young people’, Culture, Health and
Sexuality, 12 (4), 359–371.
Book
In the reference list a book is cited as follows:
1. The author’s/authors’ surname, followed by a comma
2. The author’s/authors’ initials(s) followed by a period. If more than one author, each author’s
name is separated by a comma.
3. The year of publication, in round brackets
4. The full title of the book, including any subtitle, written in italics, followed by a period.
Capitalise only the first word of the book title and any proper nouns contained in the book title,
followed by a period. If the book title contains a colon, capitalise the word immediately following
the colon
5. The edition number of the book, but only if the book is not the first edition, followed by a period,
followed by a comma (e.g. 2nd ed.,)
6. The place of publication, followed by a colon
7. The name of the publisher, followed by a period
Example: Book, single author
Fealy, G.M. (2009) The Adelaide Hospital School of Nursing, 1859–2009: A commemorative
history. Dublin: Columba Press.
Note: Only the first word and proper nouns in the book title are capitalised.
Example: Citation for a book in the reference list, multiple authors
McDonnell, O., Lohan, M., Hyde, A. and Porter, S. (2009) Social theory, health and healthcare.
London: Palgrave Macmillan.
Note: The penultimate and last authors’ names are separated by ‘and’ and not a comma.
Book chapter in an edited book
Many books are edited books. This means that one or more editors have compiled the book and that
each chapter in the book is generally written by a different author(s). Therefore edited books tend to
have multiple authors, so when citing from a particular chapter in an edited book, it is important
that the name of the chapter author(s) is cited in the in-text citation.
In the reference list for a book chapter in an edited book, the author and title of the book chapter
and the pages in which the chapter appears must be cited along with the names of the book editors
and details of the book as follows:
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1. The author’s/authors’ last name, followed by a comma
2. The author’s/authors’ initials(s) followed by a period.
3. The year of publication, in parentheses
4. The full title of the book chapter, including any subtitle, followed by a period. Capitalize the first
word and any proper nouns only in the book chapter title
5. The editor’s/editors’ surname, followed by editor’s/editors’ initials(s)
6. The abbreviation ‘ed.’ in parentheses for a single editor, or ‘eds’ in parentheses for multiple
editors
7. The full title of the book, including any subtitle, written in italics, followed by a period.
Capitalise only the first word of the book title and any proper nouns contained in the book title. If
the book title contains a colon, capitalise the word immediately following the colon
8. The place of publication, followed by a colon.
9. The name of the publisher, followed by a comma
10. The pages in which the book chapter appears, followed by a period
Example: Book chapter, single author in an edited book
Furlong, E. and O’Toole, S. (2006) Psychological care for patients with cancer. In: Kearney, N. and
Richardson, A. (eds) Nursing patients with cancer: Principles and practice. Edinburgh: Churchill
Livingstone, pp. 717–737.
Note: The abbreviation ‘eds’ is an abbreviation of the word ‘editors’ and is placed in parentheses
after the book editors’ names.
Note: For two or more book editors, the abbreviation is ‘eds’, as in this example.
Note: The abbreviation ‘eds’ is not followed by a period.
Note: The abbreviation is ‘ed.’ where there is a single editor and the abbreviation ‘ed’ is followed
by a period.
Published report
In the reference list a published reported is referenced similar to a book and must be cited in the
following order:
1. The author’s/authors’ last surname, followed by a comma,
2. The author’s/authors’ initials(s) followed by a period
3. The year of publication, in parentheses
4. The full title of the report, including any subtitle, written in italics, followed by a period.
Capitalise only the first word and any proper nouns contained in the report title. If the report title
contains a colon, capitalise the word immediately following the colon.
5. The place of publication, followed by a colon
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6. The name of the publisher followed by a period
Example: Published report, multiple authors
Drennan, J., Naughton, C., Allen, D., Hyde, A., Felle, P., O’Boyle, K., Treacy, P. and Butler, M.
(2009) National independent evaluation of the nurse and midwife prescribing initiative. Dublin:
University College Dublin.
Note: The publisher in this instance is an institution and not a publishing company.
Example: Published report, no author indicated
Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) (2008) Standards to support learning and assessment in
practice. Nursing and Midwifery Council: London.
Note: The publisher in this instance is a statutory body and not a publishing company.
Conference paper
In the reference list a conference paper published reported is referenced similarly to a book and
must be cited in the following order:
1. The author’s/authors’ last surname, followed by a comma,
2. The author’s/authors’ initials(s) followed by a period
3. The year of publication, in parentheses
4. The full title of the conference paper, placed in single quotation marks, followed by a comma
Capitalise only the first word and any proper nouns contained in the paper title. If the paper title
contains a colon, capitalise the word immediately following the colon
5. The full title of the conference in italics, followed by a period
6. The location (city) in which the conference took place, followed by a comma
7. The date(s) on which the conference took place, followed by a period
8. The place of publication, followed by a colon
9. The name of the publisher or conference organising body followed by a period
Example: Conference paper
Crawley, L. (2010) ‘Women in old age: An egalitarian analysis of the emotional significance of
affective inequalities’, Thirty-ninth Annual Conference of the British Society of Gerontology,
Brunel University, London, 5–8 July. London: British Society of Gerontology.
Note: The year of publication is the year in which the paper was presented, i.e. 2010.
Note: The place (city) in which the conference took place was London.
Note: The name of the publisher/conference organising body was the British Society of
Gerontology
Unpublished works (thesis)
Unpublished works, such as a PhD thesis are listed in the following way:
1. The author’s/authors’ last surname, followed by a comma,
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2. The author’s/authors’ initials(s) followed by a period
3. The year of publication, in parentheses
4. The full title of the thesis, including any subtitle in italics, followed by a period
5. The words ‘unpublished PhD thesis’ (or unpublished master’s thesis’, if appropriate), followed
by a period.
6. The name of the degree awarding body, followed by a period.
Example: Unpublished work (thesis)
O’Toole, S. (2011) A narrative analysis of accounts of dying with Motor Neuron Disease: Stories of
suffering. Unpublished PhD thesis. University College Dublin.
Internet
Unpublished works, such as a PhD thesis are listed in the following way:
1. The author’s/authors’ last surname, followed by a comma,
2. The author’s/authors’ initials(s) followed by a period
3. The year of publication, in parentheses
4. The full title of the document, including any subtitle, in italics, followed by a period
5. The place of publication, if appropriate, followed by a colon
7. The name of the publisher, followed by a period
8. The phrase ‘Available online at’, followed by a colon
The URL link, followed by the phrase in parentheses: ‘Accessed’ followed by a colon, followed by
the date on which the article was accessed online. :
Example: Internet article
Department of Health and Children (2010) All-Ireland traveller health study, Dublin: Department
of Health and Children, Available online at:
http://www.dohc.ie/publications/traveller_health_study.html (Accessed: 27 June 2011).
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Example of a reference list
When compiling the reference list do not use numbering or bullet points and do not underline
journal or book titles.
References
Coghlan, D. and Casey, M. (2001) ‘Action research from the inside: Issues and challenges in doing
action research in your own hospital,’ Journal of Advanced Nursing, 35 (5), pp. 674–682.
Hyde, A., Carney, M., Drennan, J., Butler, M., Lohan, M. and Howlett, E. (2010) ‘The silent
treatment: Parents’ narratives of sexuality education with young people’, Culture, Health and
Sexuality, 12 (4):359–371.
McDonnell, O., Lohan, M., Hyde, A. and Porter, S. (2009) Social theory, health and healthcare.
London: Palgrave Macmillan.
Sheridan, A. J. (2006) ‘The impact of political transition on psychiatric nursing: A case study of
20th century Ireland’, Nursing Inquiry, 13 (4), 289–299.
Note: Each reference in the list is separated by a single line space.
For further information on the Harvard Style, visit the UCD Library site at:
http://www.ucd.ie/library/students/information_skills/citation/harvard.html
A pdf version of the file is available at:
http://www.ucd.ie/library/students/information_skills/citation/harvard.html
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References
Pears, R. and Shields, G. (2010) Cite them right: The essential referencing guide (8th edition). New
York: Palgrave Macmillan.
University College Dublin (2011) Plagiarism policy and procedures. Dublin: University College
Dublin Available online at: http://www.ucd.ie/registry/academicsecretariat/pol.htm (Accessed 4
August 2011).
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